Hannibal Barca
"I will find a way, or make one." :: -Hannibal, when his generals claimed it would be impossible to cross the Alps with elephants. "In every battle Hannibal fought, he was usually outnumbered two to one. He could outwit anyone." -Patrick Hunt, PhD, Professor of Archaeology, Stanford. Hannibal, the Carthaginian general whose army of elephants terrorized Rome, the greatest empire of its time; Genghis Khan, the 13th Century Mongolian ruler whose legions built the greatest empire of all time. -Hannibal ended up being a faliure, he was hated in Carthage and killed himself by drinking poison. Stats *Era: 216 BC *Age: 26 *Height: 5'7" *Weight: 155 lbs Symbol - War Elephant (Iconic Weapon of Hannibal's Army) History Hannibal (248 BC-183 or 182 BC) was one of the sons of Hamilcar Barca, a Carthaginian leader and general. Following Carthage's defeat in the First Punic War at the hands of the Romans, Hamilcar sought to improve Carthage's fortunes by conquering the Iberian Peninsula (modern-day Portugal and Spain). It was there that he famously had his son Hannibal swear to dedicate his life to the destruction of Rome. After his father's death in battle and his brother-in-law Hasdrubal's assassination, Hannibal was appointed as the commander-in-chief of the Carthaginian army. In 218 BC, he led a force of 38,000 infantry, 8,000 cavalry, and 37 war elephants through the Alps, intending to invade Italy from the north. Although almost half of his men and almost all of his elephants perished on the journey, Hannibal won a series of battles against the Romans and occupied much of the peninsula for the next 15 years. Finally, Hannibal was recalled to Carthage to defend against a Roman invasion under Scipio Africanus. After his defeat at the Battle of Zama effectively ended the Second Punic War, Hannibal lost much of his popularity. Nevertheless, he was able to secure election to the office of suffete, or chief magistrate and helped Carthage to renewed prosperity. The Romans, alarmed that their defeated foes were recovering so quickly, ordered Hannibal to surrender to them. Instead, Hannibal went into voluntary exile and the Romans pursued him for over a decade. Finally cornered in Asia Minor, Hannibal poisoned himself using toxins said to be hidden in a ring. He would rather die than surrender to Rome and her armies. Hannibal would later go on to be one of the most celebrated generals in history, having never lost a battle until Zama. Legacy It was written that Hannibal taught the Romans the meaning of fear. He became such a symbol of terror, that when faced with an imminent disaster, members of the Senate would exclaim "Hannibal ante portas!" ("Hannibal before the gates!") to express their fear or anxiety. Statues of the Carthaginian were even erected in the streets of Rome itself to celebrate their defeat of such a worthy adversary. Military historian Theodore Ayrault Dodge once called Hannibal the "father of military strategy", because even his greatest enemy, the Roman Republic, would later adopt his tactics. The Romans greatly feared his military genius and in the centuries that followed, came to regard him as the greatest enemy Rome had ever faced.﻿ Weapons, Armor and Tactics Final Battle The battle starts with Genghis and his men appearing at the top of a hill. Genghis Khan is on horseback. In the distance an elephant trumpets marking Hannibal Barca's arrival. Hannibal is riding atop his mighty war elephant while three of his men are on foot and one is on horseback. Genghis orders his men to unleash a torrent of arrows. Hannibal's soldiers throw up their shields. Most of the arrows bounce off harmlessly but one finds its mark, lodging itself in an infanryman's neck. The Carthaginian general then orders his horseman to wheel of to the right and attack Genghis' men. While Hannibal advances with his infantry. The cavalryman charges and is met by a Mongolian footman, who is quickly dispatched with a Soliferrum to the chest. Another soldier gives the Khan his Jida lance. The Carthaginian horseman keeps charging trying to get off another shot with his javelin, but is impaled on the Mongolian warlord's lance. Genghis Khan roars in triumph. Meanwhile Hannibal dismounts his elephant and prods it into charging at the Mongolian squadron. Khan's infantrymen try to stave off the collosal beast with their recurve bows while Genghis rides of to the flank. When the arrows fired by the Mongolians do not hinder the war elephant, they retreat. One man trips and falls on his face. When he looks up the foot of the monster comes crashing down on his head, mashing his face to pulp. The remaining two Mongols turn around and start firing rapid shots at the elephant. One arrow hits it below the eye, causing it to panic and flee the battlefield. One of Hannibal's footmen charges Genghis, who is on horseback. The Mongol easily slices open his opponents face with his Turko-Mongol saber. The remaining Carthaginian soldier chases the two Mongolians. Barca's soldier throws his soliferrum but it is blocked by the Mongols iron shield. The two engage in combat. The Carthaginian hacks at his foe's head with his Falcata but his blow is blocked again by the shield. The Mongol then chops with his sword and his attack is parried by his opponents sword. The Carthaginian then proceeds to delve his sword into the Mongol's chest. The other Mongol soldier then turns and attacks the Carthaginian. The two warriors ferociously exchange blows on each other's shields. Hannibal's soldier then slashes at the Mongol's feet but the cut is dodged. The Mongol , seeing the opening in the defence then slashes his foe's neck, brings back his blade and rips open his enemy's face. Hannibal comes from behind and stabs the Mongols in the back and throws him to the ground. Genghis rides back, throws his bow away and dismounts. The two warriors eye each other waiting for their opponent to attack. Genghis draws his sword and yells a warcry. He then makes two slashes, a backhand and a forehand but misses both strikes. He then hacks Hannibal's neck but his move is blocked by Hannibal's shield. The Carthaginian then strikes at Genghis Khan but hits his shield. He then chops down at Khan but misses. Genghis then quickly slashes open his thigh. Hannibal is not phased and continues his attack. Genghis is able to knock away his enemy's shield. Khan attacks again. Hannibal then hacks twice at the Mongolian warlord's shield, parries a downward slash from the Mongol and stabs Khan's stomach, but the lammellar armor holds. Genghis then hits Hannibal on the head twice with his sword. Hannibal goes into shock from the force of the blow. Genghis then slashes him across the throat. Hannibal crumbles to the ground lifeless and bloody. Genghis Khan raises his sword and shield and screams in victory. Deadliest Warrior: Legends weapons: Short Range: Falcata, Celtic Longsword Medium Range: Sarissa, Dory Long Range: Soliferrum, Sling Armor: Lorica Hamata, Pteryges Joke Weapon: Wooden Spoon Finisher: Hannibal headbutts his opponent, forcing them back, then quickly stabs them with a spear. The victim falls to the ground and Hannibal stabs into them, twisting his spear. Trivia *Some of Hannibal's scenes in the episode was stock footage from BBC's Hannibal – Rome's Worst Nightmare. *Hannibal's appearance in the video games is significantly different from the tv series. In the game, his skin is dark but in the tv show he is whiter. Other forms of media debate over Hannibal's skin color. *Although Hannibal is famous for his elephants, he only had 37 War Elephants in his invasion of the Second Punic War, all dying before the end of the war. *Hannibal recognized Alexander the Great as one of the best generals before Hannibal's time. There is debate over if Hannibal declared Alexander or Phyrrhus of Epirus (Alexander's second cousin) as the greatest general in ancient history. Category:Warriors Category:Ancient Warriors Category:Named Warriors Category:Defeated Warriors Category:Season 3 Category:Horse Warriors Category:Ancient European Warriors Category:Ancient African Warriors